Ohio 15th District

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

It will come as no surprise that Gov. John Kasich of Ohio doesn't care that much about the women of this state. Kasich and his party have worked hard to take away women's reproductive rights, restricted the amount of women in leadership roles within his administration, and refused to address income equality. We can't forget Kasich's disdain for the teaching profession which is dominated by women. Now Kasich's aim is to do even more harm to women.

It seems that, while Kasich plans to fund free mammograms and pap
tests for uninsured women up to 200% FPL, if they're diagnosed and not
eligible for the Medicaid Expansion (which only covers those earning up
to 139% FPL) they'll have to buy private health insurance. In short, he
only cares if you get diagnosed, he doesn't care if you need treatment.
And if you're lucky enough to earn so little to qualify for the
Medicaid Expansion, he's going to charge you a monthly premium to get it....

It is no wonder that Kasich and the Republican Party have found it difficult to win the votes of women. Mitch McConnell's tactics that are holding up the confirmation of the first African-American woman as Attorney General do not help the Republicans (see DailyNews).

The Republican war on women continues. When we women hold the majority, we'll treat the male-dominated Republicans with the same respect they gave us.

Sunday, March 08, 2015

If you live in New Hampshire, Ohio Gov. John Kasich will be arriving soon. Kasich claims lots and lots of successes, but don't believe him for a second!

Plunderbund names a few ways Kasich has made life more difficult for Ohio women:

...In his latest budget, the biggest in Ohio history, Gov. Kasich wants to
eliminate key Medicaid optional programs for women above 138 percent of
the federal poverty level that include a program to provide family
planning coverage, a breast and cervical cancer program, and a program
that covers pregnant women. In June of 2013, Gov. Kasich signed a state
budget that included multiple attacks on family planning and abortion
providers. A strong voice for women’s health rights, NARAL Pro-Choice
Ohio notes that the governor and his compliant GOP-led legislature are
forcing clinics to close, “leaving millions of Ohioans without access to
safe, legal abortion services in their community.” The so-called
“Heartbeat” bill, HB 69, pending in committee, would prohibit an
abortion when there is a fetal heartbeat. Gov. Kasich has been protected
by legislative leaders who kept this bill, and a right-to-work bill,
from reaching his desk. Demonstrating exactly how vulnerable he is on
this topic, Gov. Kasich refuses to say more than he’s “pro-life.” It’s
hard to imagine, as he caters to his core base of voters, that he would
veto this bill or others like it given the bills he has signed, one of which never had a minute in committee before it was injected at the 11th hour into a budget he signed into law....

....when John Kasich wants to tell Ohio’s story, he really means that he
wants to hide the harms he’s already signed into law that won’t be
reversed anytime soon. Recent national polls show Kasich trending near
zero in the percent of Americans who know who he is enough to weigh-in
on his as yet unannounced campaign to live in the White House.

Maybe one reporter should ask Gov. Kasich what he would say to a
women CEO who would consider locating in Ohio, but who doesn’t want to
move her, her daughters, her female employees and their daughters to a
state where they are denied by law access to rights enshrined in the
U.S. Constitution? Maybe the governor doesn’t think there’s a connection
between bad social policy and good economic policy outcomes. But that
would again underscore why he and other GOP officials who share all his
beliefs would be a big step backward for America were they and a
like-minded Congress come to power.

Here are a few other tidbits about Kasich's damage to Ohio:

> Women have been hit hard during the Kasich years. Kasich & the GOP have done their best to block women's reproductive rights and equal pay for women.

> Under Kasich, Ohio's public schools have faced massive budget cuts, while failing charter schools have received more money. Because of the cuts to public schools, school districts have had to turn to school levies to raise money to keep schools open.

> Cities, and counties have seen their money from the state cute severely which has resulted in cuts to police officers and firefighter divisions.

> Kasich refused to save 1,000 high-paying jobs at Ormet. He acted like he just didn't care about the people and their community.

> Ohio has expanded fracking under Kasich. The dangers to our environment, water, and increases in earthquakes have been noticed by everyone.

> Kasich is working to reduce income tax for the wealthy while he has raised the sales tax on goods and services. In Ohio, the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer.

> Ohio has gained some jobs, but bringing more Walmarts to the state should not be viewed as success.

> Over 100,000 men, women, children, and veterans were cut from the food program in the state. Food pantries remain overwhelmed.

New Hampshire is a much smaller state than Ohio. I just hope that Kasich's ego can fit inside 'The Granite State.'

Monday, March 02, 2015

Why did John Boehner invite Ohio Gov. John Kasich to attend the speech by Benjamin Netanyahu?

The answer is simple! With so many Democrats not expected to be in their seats, Boehner needs to fill up every seat. Republican governors, and special invited guests from previous Republican administrations will fill every seat so that Boehner is not embarrassed.

Boehner is in a lot of hot water since he appears unable to get his Republican Congress to vote for his bills. With so many fractures in the House Republican caucus, it is safe to say that Boehner and his bunch are completely inept. Even the Republican-loving Columbus Dispatch is aware of Boehner's failures.

> Rudy Giuliani's racist comments about President Obama show that the Republican Part just can't stop itself from being stupid. If you are interested in my further comments about Giuliani, check out my post at stubbornliberal.blogspot.com

Monday, February 16, 2015

> Ohio's students are facing a massive amount of tests in the next few weeks (Cleveland.com). There
is just too much time being spent on preparing for and taking tests. As the Governor and General Assembly continue to destroy public education in Ohio, more tests will be used in the future.

> Plunderbund has an interesting post on a recent teacher evaluation proposal from the Ohio General Assembly. It appears that those in the General Assembly that know nothing about educating children are doing their best to make it even more difficult.

> Gov. John Kasich continues his tour of states to talk up his ideas surrounding a balanced budget amendment. His appearances just happen to be in states that will have early Republican presidential primaries. Surprise.

Monday, February 09, 2015

* WKBN is reporting that workplace fatalities are up in the state of Ohio. Even though Republicans hate regulations, the existence of the safety rules are in place to save lives!

* Vaccination requirements are being ignored across the nation, and as a result children are dying. Those of us that are old enough to remember can recall youngsters with polio, measles, mumps, and other communicable diseases. We don't want to revisit those horrible days. We need to go back to the time when all children had to be vaccinated to attend school. Only those children with an ironclad medical reason should be exempt.

_ _ _

> Gov. Kasich's new funding plan is being closing scrutinized. Despite the talking-point that funding is increasing, the reality is that education cuts are being made.

Monday, February 02, 2015

I enjoyed the Puppy Bowl again this year. There was another game yesterday?????

*** Ohio is ranked 37th in job growth. This is sooooo sad. While Kasich tours the country talking about balancing the federal budget and preaching, many Ohioans have just stopped looked for work. Many of the new jobs that we have seen are low wage ones that make it impossible to support a family. As we know, Kasich the the Republicans care little about those things.

Monday, January 26, 2015

Recent information about the attendance records of Ohio's charter (aka 'community schools') schools have made taxpayers upset. It appears that some of these schools are receiving money for invisible students. Following an investigation by the office of the Ohio Auditor, attendance records were released from some charters. Here is part of what was discovered-----

....A report released yesterday by Ohio Auditor Dave Yost found
significantly lower attendance at half of the 30 charter schools where
auditors conducted unannounced head counts this past fall....

....Among those with the widest gap was Capital High School, 640 Harrisburg
Pike, Columbus. The school reported 298 students; auditors counted 142,
fewer than half.........Gateway Academy on Kimberly Parkway North in Columbus reported 100 students but auditors counted 52, with 20 students absent....

Just 43 of the 153 students listed in attendance records at Dayton
Technology Design High School were present when investigators from the
state Auditor’s office conducted a surprise, random head count at 30
charter schools across the state, according to a report issued Thursday....

.....Auditors showed up at 8:35 a.m. Oct. 1 at Dayton Technology Design
H.S. and found just 43 students in school — well below the 172 estimated
enrollment given in July 2014 and below the 153 students reported to
Ohio Department of Education by the school to be in attendance on Oct.
1. School Director Karl Perkins told auditors that the headcount would
be low because tardy students tend to arrive closer to 9 a.m. and some
log onto the computer from home, the report said.

Yost’s team
showed up again — unannounced — at 8:55 a.m. on Nov. 12 and counted 60
students at Dayton Technology Design H.S. The audit also noted that the
school didn’t notify ODE that it would offer “blended” learning where
students take classes in person and online.....

Two Hamilton County charter schools had fewer than 25 percent of
registered students in the classrooms when investigators from the Ohio
Auditor's Office stopped by for a surprise head count, according to a
state report released Thursday.....

....The local schools – Life Skills Center of Hamilton County and Life
Skills Center of Cincinnati, which share an administrator and some
teachers – are among seven schools whose surprise checks found far fewer
students in the seats than the estimates provided.

Reported
registration tallies were 64 at Life Skills Hamilton and 127 at Life
Skills Cincinnati. But the headcounts, conducted Oct. 1, found 18 at
Hamilton and 22 on the Cincinnati campus....

You can download the entire report from the State Auditor's Office here.

If you are concerned about wasted money and corporations getting richer off of your tax money, call your state representative's office and demand an investigation. I'd like to see a full report on charter school attendance, money received, and graduation rates side by side. It is time to stop wasting our tax dollars on these failing charter schools!!!!

FYI: Those online charter school ads you see on TV are the same ads shown in other states. It is fair to conclude that results are not the same for every student in every state.

- Chris Christie wants the people of New Jersey to forget about the economic mess he has created in the state. New Jersey ranks 49th in job growth according to ASU W.P. Carey Research. Ohio is ranked 38th.)

- Research published in the Washington Post shows that in Ohio 39% students in public schools are 'low income'. Hungry children cannot learn! Wake up, people!

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

* The Ohio State University Football Buckeyes won the National Championship this week. As we say here in Ohio:

Go Buckeyes!

As an Ohio State graduate, I am proud of the coach and team for doing a great job this season.

>>> On the grim side, Ohio's job growth continues to lag behind other states. Ohio is ranked 38th in job growth (which is much better than number 49, New Jersey). According to ODJFS, Ohio continues to have layoffs.

Tuesday, January 06, 2015

...Tamir Rice was carrying a pellet gun near a recreation center when he
was shot and killed in November. Police shot Rice in the abdomen
seconds after arriving on scene in response to a 911 call that reported
someone who was “ probably a juvenile ” was waving a gun that was “ probably fake ”.

“I don’t have confidence that a [state Bureau of Criminal
Investigation] probe into police use-of-force would be a transparent,
due-process kind of investigation,” said Jackson, according to Northeast Ohio Media Group . He instead called on the Cuyahoga County sheriff to investigate Rice’s death....

Friday, January 02, 2015

Let me start off the year by recognizing the success of the Ohio State Buckeyes and their win in the Sugar Bowl.

GO BUCKEYES!

The Buckeye Nation is a little tired today. The late game at the Sugar Bowl made many Buckeye fans stay up well past their bedtimes. That game was heart-stopping!!! Thank you, Coach Meyer and the Ohio State Buckeyes for an exciting game!

* Politics.
Here in Ohio, it appears that Gov. John Kasich is running for President. He is not out there like Rand Paul or Rick "oops" Perry, but he is conducting a campaign for his 'federal balanced budget' law. Kasich, like most Republicans, thinks government interferes in their lives and that of their business cronies. Even though they hate government, rules, and laws, they continue to run for office to get a paycheck from the government.

Monday, December 29, 2014

It doesn't take an economist to figure out that Ohio's job growth remains in the toilet. Layoffs continue, as recorded at ODJFS, and there are many people that are experiencing longterm unemployment. Just because Gov. Kasich and his spokesman say that Ohio's is doing well doesn't make it a fact.

The good people at Plunderbund have documented the lagging Ohio economy. In a recent post, Plunderbund reported that Ohio's experts have had plenty to say about the lack of job growth. If you need the truth instead of the b.s. from Kasich & Co., read Plunderbund's website.

>>> It is time for the Cleveland Browns to send Johnny Manziel back to preschool. If the Browns really want a winning record, they'll cut him and Josh Gordon. They are both idiots!

Monday, December 15, 2014

A newly launched mentoring program funded with taxpayer dollars
requires Ohio school districts to partner with a faith-based
organization and a business in order to have access to the money,
reports Cleveland.com.

The mentoring program, championed by Republican Governor John Kasich,
provides $10 million to Ohio schools to work with at-risk students,
however school districts are discovering a religious requirement
inserted into the program.

Any school district that wants state money from the program must
partner with both a church and a business, or with a faith-based
organization and a non-profit set up by a business to do community
service. Failure to incorporate a faith-based group will leave a school
district out in the cold.....

This puts an unfair burden on school district and restricts students from receiving the help they need if they do not partner with a church or religious group. Are some religious groups better than others? Are certain groups excluded? How does the governor know that no conversion tactics will be used? Have the religious groups been screened?

This is just another Kasich attempt to cut money to schools! If church buildings and faith-based personnel are used for certain programs, can Kasich be certain that no conversion attempts will occur? He can't. Time to call the ACLU!

Monday, December 08, 2014

Congratulations to our Ohio State Buckeyes for their victory against Wisconsin! Go Buckeyes!
Working with a third string quarterback, and after the death of a team member, Ohio State clearly overcame a tough season to win the game.

Many sportscasters were wondering how Ohio State manages to have so many talented quarterbacks. It is a secret and we'll never tell!

--------------------

The layoffs just continue in Ohio. According to the warn site of ODJFS, more Ohioans are being notified of layoffs by their companies. Gov. John Kasich's 'Ohio miracle' of job creation continues to be a fabrication. According to the W.P. Carey School of Business, Ohio's job growth remains in the toilet ( at 35). Ohio's 12 month ranking of job growth has the state at 45.

Yesterday afternoon, a woman and her son were sifting through a dumpster near 6th and Courtland
avenues when they found his body. The dumpster is around the corner from Karageorge’s apartment on
E. 7th Avenue, close to the Short North Kroger.....

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

The U.S. Senate did not approve the bill allowing for the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. The measure failed by one vote. Americans should realize that the information about massive job creation from the pipeline construction is nothing more than propaganda.

The construction of the pipeline would only create 50 permanent jobs and 9,000 temporary jobs. The oil from the pipeline would flow to Texas where it would then be exported to other countries. The owners of the pipeline have waged a large campaign that is being handled by a public relations firm.

Opposition to the pipeline has come from Native Americans, farmers, environmentalists, and others. One of the more vocal groups has been Canadians http://tinyurl.com/ld62tlu. We should not rest until we have completely stopped this pipeline. Those behind the pipeline have not given up their fight (http://tinyurl.com/oukuph8) and neither should we.

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Ohio’s 25-percent governor, measured by the percentage of registered
voters who actually voted for John Kasich last Tuesday, will no longer
have to face electors. But he cannot escape facing undeniable statistics
that show what a poor job creator he has been over the last four years.

Both the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services [ODJFS] and the
US Bureau of Labor Statistics [BLS] released a weekly update to new
claims for unemployment this morning in a timely fashion, according to George Zeller
of Cleveland, a long-time trusted economic analyst. The numbers again
show the Buckeye State performing badly, especially when compared to job
growth nationally, which according to the Wall Street Journal is the
true measure of job performance.....

...As a result of this week’s newly unfavorable figures, six of Ohio’s
seven large multi-county metro regions currently have elevated “job
destruction” levels of current new unemployment claims, with only
Cleveland-Akron-Lorain-Elyria in the not elevated “job growth” range.
Youngstown-Warren soared astonishingly from a favorable figure three
weeks ago to the highest elevated job destruction level among the urban
regions this week for the third consecutive week....

Here is additional information about layoffs in Ohio because of Kasich's cuts to cities and counties.

> The Vindicator reports that cuts and layoffs are planned in Youngstown.

> ODJFS has added to the list of planned closings and layoffs in the state.

oungstown
firefighters walked from the downtown fire station with firefighters
from nine other area departments to a city council meeting to protest
Youngstown’s plan to reduce its ranks.
Mayor John A. McNally said
the city will take a firetruck off the road, starting in January, and
not replace eight firefighters who will leave through retirement. It’s a
key component of his plan to save the city $1 million annually.
Dave
Cook, president of the International Association of Firefighters Local
312, said the walk Wednesday was “to bring more awareness and express
our displeasure with the disturbing decision to close a firetruck. Why
would you shut down a fire truck in the city with the highest arson rate
in Ohio?”
- See more at: http://www.vindy.com/news/2014/nov/13/firefighters-protest-plan/#sthash.qDFC6Jx9.dpuf

oungstown
firefighters walked from the downtown fire station with firefighters
from nine other area departments to a city council meeting to protest
Youngstown’s plan to reduce its ranks.
Mayor John A. McNally said
the city will take a firetruck off the road, starting in January, and
not replace eight firefighters who will leave through retirement. It’s a
key component of his plan to save the city $1 million annually.
Dave
Cook, president of the International Association of Firefighters Local
312, said the walk Wednesday was “to bring more awareness and express
our displeasure with the disturbing decision to close a firetruck. Why
would you shut down a fire truck in the city with the highest arson rate
in Ohio?”
- See more at: http://www.vindy.com/news/2014/nov/13/firefighters-protest-plan/#sthash.qDFC6Jx9.dpuf

Social media blew up this weekend over proposed changes to Ohio’s
Operating Standards by the State Board of Education. The major issue is
a change that seems to eliminate a requirement for districts to have
specialists to teach the arts and physical education....

...So as you call and email the members of the State School Board
tonight, tomorrow, and for the next month (changes are set to be
considered until that time), don’t stop there. The School Board’s
actions are a symptom of the problem that exists at the legislative
level where Kasich & Co. simply don’t care about funding public
schools adequately. As long as his kids in a private school are doing
okay….

Taking away the specially certified teachers in the arts does several things:
(1) It eliminates the opportunity for students to express themselves through art, music, and movement.
(2) It squashes creativity.
(3) It puts an unfair burden on principals, classroom teachers, and communities to provide outlets for children.
(4) It creates suspicion that the state plans to make further cuts to schools.

Let school board members know exactly how you feel about this proposal.